A plane has crashed into a nature reserve near Essex, closing a reservoir to the public days after Christmas.
A “small” aircraft landed at Hanningfield Reservoir near Chelmsford in Essex on December 28 at around 2pm.
Firefighters, air ambulances and HM Coastguard rushed to the scene and the site was closed to visitors all day yesterday. Police are still at the reservoir investigating the “serious” incident and asked the public to avoid the area.
A spokesperson for Essex Police said today: “We remain on the scene of a serious incident at Hanningfield Reservoir, Chelmsford.
“We are working with several organisations at the scene now and that work will be ongoing.
“We would please ask the public to avoid this area where possible while this work continues.
“An investigation has been launched.”
It is not yet clear whether anyone was harmed in the crash. However, bouquets of flowers were pictured tied to a fence.
Chief Superintendent Waheed Khan said: “We are still in the early stages of our investigation and are working closely with the Air Accident Investigation Branch to establish what has happened.”
The police asked anyone who has information, CCTV, dash cam or other footage in relation to the incident to get in touch quoting incident 552 of 28 December.
Essex Wildlife Trust said on social media that the reservoir was closed and the organisation was “unable to comment further” as it is a matter for the police and emergency services.
The trust said: “We are doing all that we can to support them. We hope to be open again tomorrow, but we will update the public through our website and social media channels when we know more.”
